As the onlinemagazine IGN reports, EA and Microsoft may will offer Xbox Live support for some new games:

"After years of discussions, Electronic Arts and Microsoft are putting the final touches on a partnership enabling four of EA's sports titles, and possibly three non-sports games, to go online with Xbox Live this fall, IGN learned today. The Redwood City, Ca.-based publisher will announce its strategy at the annual Electronic Entertainment Exposition this May, but it may reveal plans earlier to investors this April 29, during its upcoming fiscal announcement.

"They're psyched," a former EA employee, who asked not to be identified, told IGN. "EA is going to bring its games to Live this year. It's finally happening."

Madden NFL 2005, NCAA College Football, NASCAR Thunder 2005, and NBA Live comprise the sports package for Xbox Live this fall. The non-sports games are less concrete, but as IGN has learned from several sources close to the company, Battlefield: Modern Combat, EA's new GoldenEye game, and perhaps Burnout 3 are first in line for Xbox online compatibility."

Maybe also Need for Speed Underground 2 will support Xbox Live, who knows... More details will be revealed on the E3 in Los Angeles.

As you may know, we already posted news about a predecessor of NFS Underground last week, but we had to take the news offline.
Anyway, now it's official: there will be a Need for Speed Underground 2!

Need for Speed Underground 2 will challenge gamers to immerse themselves in the tuner culture, exploring an expansive, free-roaming city divided into five distinct neighbourhoods. Gamers will encounter rival racers who will initiate events, tip players off to the hottest racing spots, and show them where to buy the most sought-after licensed aftermarket upgrades.

The game will feature new game modes, deep new performance customisation and tuning, and more than 30 licensed cars. The game also delivers twice the visual customisation upgrades as the original game, providing a staggering 70 billion possible car combinations for total automotive self-expression.

Need for Speed Underground 2 is currently under development by EA Canada and is scheduled for release in fall 2004 for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, Xbox® video game system from Microsoft, Nintendo GameCube™, PC, and Game Boy® Advance. This game has not yet been rated by the ESRB.

Modding is no new. Already in 1996 fans created modified versions of "Doom", so-called "Mods" which extend the shelf-life and increase the sales of a game. The "Hollywood Reporter" got focused on this, and wrote an articel about Mods, related to the examples Half Life and Tribes. Very interesting to read.

We all know, Electronic Arts does not publish any Modding Tools. Also this is mentioned in the article:

"Electronic Arts, for example, believes in customization and letting you put your face on the players in their sports games," said PC Gamer's Morris. "But that customization is a far cry from (modding) and giving modders the tools to change the game completely. Of course, EA is aware of the business model that supports modding but, instead, it wants to own its brands and not dilute them. It wants to make money on the release of its games as well as on the add-ons that follow.

"Which philosophy is the better one? As a gamer," Morris added, "I have to support the philosophy of Valve founder and managing director Gabe Newell, who says that his team may never have an idea half as good as some 13-year-old who will build a mod that will generate a demand for two million copies of Valve's next game. And so Valve gives him every tool to do that. But, at the end of the day, will EA make more than Valve? Probably."

We all just can hope EA might will change their direction in the future, and makes Need for Speed possible for editing. :)

The World Cyber Games is an computer/video gaming event, orientated like the olympic games. This year they also play a Need for Speed title the first time.
The WCG 2004 Grand Final will be set October.6-10, 2004 (5 days) in San Francisco, U.S. , and the participants will be representatives from 60 countries.

Electronic Arts today announced that President and Chief Operating Officer John Riccitiello, responsible for global publishing, online and other corporate departments, has resigned his position effective immediately but will remain at EA for a transition period.

"I want to thank John for the tremendous contribution he’s made in the past six years," said CEO Larry Probst. "His vision and leadership have been extremely valuable and he has built an outstanding team. I wish John the very best."

"My time at EA was the best work experience in my life," said Mr. Riccitiello. "Personally, it is time to do something different and I intend to start a private equity business. I’m leaving EA when the company is enriched with the best people, the best properties and a very bright future."

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